Lanark film-maker grappled with Mongolian wrestlers

Robert MacDonald travelled there with his brother Jamie and friend Davie Scott to take on the muscular Mongolians at their national sport.

Given that Robert is a wedding film-maker to trade, it seemed appropriate to wear the kilt as he battled against wrestlers regarded as heroes in their homeland.

Robert said: “Wrestling is the country’s national sport and the wrestlers over there are regarded as superstars.

“In the weeks leading up to the trip I had done some training with a friend of mine, Chris Owens, who is a personal trainer but also does MMA and freestyle wrestling.

“My brother Jamie is also an expert in judo but nothing could prepare us for the size of these men. They were like Mongolian Mike Tysons!

“All three of us had entered a tournament and we had a practice to start off the day. One guy basically threw me about like a ragdoll for a bit.

“At the tournament Dave was up first and he lasted about 15 seconds. Dave is a big guy and can look after himself so at that point I knew we were in trouble!

“Then it was my turn and I have to admit I went down pretty quickly. Jamie lasted the longest but he was still out pretty quick.”

Despite the defeat, Robert was blown away by the hospitality and the spirit of the Mongolian people.

And he is grateful for an experience that he will never forget having travelled around the country for a number of weeks.

He added: “Mongolia is a developing country and only has three million people living in it with one million of those living in the capital city Ulan Bator.

“However, the people there are very generous and it was a wonderful experience. We arrived at the wrestling camp about 5am and they were waiting for us with vodka!

“Over there wrestling is a way of life and a proper sport. These guys are treated like footballers over here.

“It was a pleasure to be there and to make a film about it; not many people have the chance to have such an incredible experience.”

You can view a trailer of Robert’s video on his experience by logging onto Youtube and searching for “Three Bears in Mongolia”.